On Tuesday this week TMMPDX held its second #tmmHappyHour sponsored by ISITE Design. Having serviced more than 200 clients from non-profits and startups to small businesses and Fortune 25 industries, ISITE Design has an impressive list of accomplishments. For the past 17 years ISITE Design has created innovative digital experiences for their clients, offering services including digital strategy, experience design, mobile, technology and optimization. TMMPDX interviewed one of our closest friends, founder and also Director of Digital Marketing at ISITE Design Amanda Bernard to learn what makes ISITE Design one of the leading interactive agencies nationwide.

How are you connected with TMMPDX and the PSU CEPE Program?

I co founded TMMPDX with Lisa Peyton and Daniela Araujo back in 2009 and currently serve on the board of directors. My claim to fame is that I came up with our name, Thoroughly Modern Marketing.

I teach the practicum classes in two certification programs at PSU CEPE – the Digital Marketing Strategies program and the Advanced Digital Marketing Strategies program. I began teaching at PSU in 2012 when Lisa Peyton recommended me for the position (Lisa was moving on from teaching the practicum to teaching the Intro to Digital Strategy course). I love teaching the practicum classes because I get to work with the students throughout the entire program and get to cover every topic in the program, which suits me well because I’m a digital marketing generalist. The students’ rapid evolution from digital marketing newbies to delivering impressive strategies and tactical recommendations at the end of the program is extremely rewarding to witness and I get to play a small role in helping them accomplish a lot in a short amount of time.

What makes ISITE Design unique from other digital agencies?

ISITE has been a leader in the customer experience movement for years and our desire to create great experiences for our customers and our customers’ customers is ingrained in everything we do. We deliver on this vision through our connected expertise in digital strategy, experience design, marketing technology, mobile solutions, analytics and optimization. A lot of digital agencies tend to be strong in technology, design, or marketing and I can honestly say that ISITE is the digital trifecta. Also, we form long-lasting partnerships with our clients and have a “with you, not for you” mentality.

What can we expect to see as some leading digital trends in the second half of 2014?

More B2B and lead gen websites will start delivering personalized content that is based on user behavior and preferences, finally catching up to the trend that e-commerce leaders like Amazon started years ago. This will have major implications for how marketers approach customer research, persona development, audience segmentation, digital measurement and optimization, and content strategy.

Consumers’ expectations of brands to deliver meaningful digital experiences will continue to influence the “Outside In” [AB1] movement that many corporations are starting to embrace.

More companies will be getting closer to the holy grail of the complete customer profile and omni-channel data collection with the help of customer data platforms such as Lytics [AB2], a Portland start-up.

How does ISITE Design stay innovative in your services/best practices and stay connected with the local digital marketing community?

Innovation happens organically inside the walls of ISITE – from our TiE Pearl start-up incubator to our daily work with enterprise clients. Everyone at ISITE has a strong desire to learn and deliver great work, which leads to having the courage to try new things and the wisdom to know how and when to push the boundaries of our work.

ISITE fully supports, encourages, and enables continuous learning by providing a yearly stipend for each employee to attend conferences and industry events, take classes, and have membership in industry associations. We also regularly hold internal “brown bag” learning sessions for the entire company to make sure thought leadership and points of view on the latest industry trends are shared across the company, in addition to publicly posting our thoughts on our 6 blogs.

We stay connected to the digital marketing community by hosting events (such as our Delight conference [AB3] and Google Analytics user group [AB4] ), supporting and attending events (such as Content Strategy PDX, TMMPDX, Portland Ad Fed, and AMA Portland… just to name a few), teaching at Portland State University, and providing mentorship through organizations like Colaboratory and ChicTech.

Can you discuss your internship program, how it has benefited former participants and how interested candidates can apply?

ISITE doesn’t have a formal internship program, so typically our internships happen when we meet people who we think would be a good fit for ISITE and there is an opportunity for us to provide valuable mentorship to the person to help advance their craft. All of the interns I have hired for the Marketing & Optimization department have been practicum students who have graduated from the Digital Marketing Strategies program at PSU CEPE. We also participate in Colaboratory [AB5], which brings 2-3 interns to ISITE for three weeks during the summer.

Candidates who are interested in a Marketing & Optimization internship can contact me directly, at abernard@isitedesign.com. We also have junior level opportunities for college graduates who are looking to get started in .Net web application development, front-end development, and user experience design that can be applied for at http://www.isitedesign.com/jobs.

Favorite happy hour drink and spot in PDX? (Aside from The Nines of course)

A manhattan is my go-to happy hour beverage, and I enjoy one at any good bourbon bar that has a patio or cozy interior. The Pope House and Southland Whiskey Kitchen are two of my favorites near the ISITE headquarters.

*Amanda is being featured in an upcoming ISITE Design hosted webinar “The Path to Personalization” – Hear how other brands are increasing customer engagement, and learn a helpful framework and approach to start your planning for personalization. The webinar will take place on Tuesday, June 10, 2014 11am PDT / 2 pm EDT. Register for this webinar here: http://cx.isitedesign.com/briefing/personalization.

On Tuesday this week TMMPDX held its second #tmmHappyHour sponsored by ISITE Design. Having serviced more than 200 clients from non-profits and startups to small businesses and Fortune 25 industries, ISITE Design has an impressive list of accomplishments. For the past 17 years ISITE Design has created innovative digital experiences for their clients, offering services including digital strategy, experience design, mobile, technology and optimization. TMMPDX interviewed one of our closest friends, founder and also Director of Digital Marketing at ISITE Design Amanda Bernard to learn what makes ISITE Design one of the leading interactive agencies nationwide.

How are you connected with TMMPDX and the PSU CEPE Program?

I co founded TMMPDX with Lisa Peyton and Daniela Araujo back in 2009 and currently serve on the board of directors. My claim to fame is that I came up with our name, Thoroughly Modern Marketing.

I teach the practicum classes in two certification programs at PSU CEPE – the Digital Marketing Strategies program and the Advanced Digital Marketing Strategies program. I began teaching at PSU in 2012 when Lisa Peyton recommended me for the position (Lisa was moving on from teaching the practicum to teaching the Intro to Digital Strategy course). I love teaching the practicum classes because I get to work with the students throughout the entire program and get to cover every topic in the program, which suits me well because I’m a digital marketing generalist. The students’ rapid evolution from digital marketing newbies to delivering impressive strategies and tactical recommendations at the end of the program is extremely rewarding to witness and I get to play a small role in helping them accomplish a lot in a short amount of time.

What makes ISITE Design unique from other digital agencies?

ISITE has been a leader in the customer experience movement for years and our desire to create great experiences for our customers and our customers’ customers is ingrained in everything we do. We deliver on this vision through our connected expertise in digital strategy, experience design, marketing technology, mobile solutions, analytics and optimization. A lot of digital agencies tend to be strong in technology, design, or marketing and I can honestly say that ISITE is the digital trifecta. Also, we form long-lasting partnerships with our clients and have a “with you, not for you” mentality.

What can we expect to see as some leading digital trends in the second half of 2014?

More B2B and lead gen websites will start delivering personalized content that is based on user behavior and preferences, finally catching up to the trend that e-commerce leaders like Amazon started years ago. This will have major implications for how marketers approach customer research, persona development, audience segmentation, digital measurement and optimization, and content strategy.

Consumers’ expectations of brands to deliver meaningful digital experiences will continue to influence the “Outside In” [AB1] movement that many corporations are starting to embrace.

More companies will be getting closer to the holy grail of the complete customer profile and omni-channel data collection with the help of customer data platforms such as Lytics [AB2], a Portland start-up.

How does ISITE Design stay innovative in your services/best practices and stay connected with the local digital marketing community?

Innovation happens organically inside the walls of ISITE – from our TiE Pearl start-up incubator to our daily work with enterprise clients. Everyone at ISITE has a strong desire to learn and deliver great work, which leads to having the courage to try new things and the wisdom to know how and when to push the boundaries of our work.

ISITE fully supports, encourages, and enables continuous learning by providing a yearly stipend for each employee to attend conferences and industry events, take classes, and have membership in industry associations. We also regularly hold internal “brown bag” learning sessions for the entire company to make sure thought leadership and points of view on the latest industry trends are shared across the company, in addition to publicly posting our thoughts on our 6 blogs.

We stay connected to the digital marketing community by hosting events (such as our Delight conference [AB3] and Google Analytics user group [AB4] ), supporting and attending events (such as Content Strategy PDX, TMMPDX, Portland Ad Fed, and AMA Portland… just to name a few), teaching at Portland State University, and providing mentorship through organizations like Colaboratory and ChicTech.

Can you discuss your internship program, how it has benefited former participants and how interested candidates can apply?

ISITE doesn’t have a formal internship program, so typically our internships happen when we meet people who we think would be a good fit for ISITE and there is an opportunity for us to provide valuable mentorship to the person to help advance their craft. All of the interns I have hired for the Marketing & Optimization department have been practicum students who have graduated from the Digital Marketing Strategies program at PSU CEPE. We also participate in Colaboratory [AB5], which brings 2-3 interns to ISITE for three weeks during the summer.

Candidates who are interested in a Marketing & Optimization internship can contact me directly, at abernard@isitedesign.com. We also have junior level opportunities for college graduates who are looking to get started in .Net web application development, front-end development, and user experience design that can be applied for at http://www.isitedesign.com/jobs.

Favorite happy hour drink and spot in PDX? (Aside from The Nines of course)

A manhattan is my go-to happy hour beverage, and I enjoy one at any good bourbon bar that has a patio or cozy interior. The Pope House and Southland Whiskey Kitchen are two of my favorites near the ISITE headquarters.

*Amanda is being featured in an upcoming ISITE Design hosted webinar “The Path to Personalization” – Hear how other brands are increasing customer engagement, and learn a helpful framework and approach to start your planning for personalization. The webinar will take place on Tuesday, June 10, 2014 11am PDT / 2 pm EDT. Register for this webinar here: http://cx.isitedesign.com/briefing/personalization.

Heather EnglishHeatherEnglishhenglish83@gmail.comAdministratorHeather is a Digital Marketing Consultant assisting various agencies and brands with digital marketing strategy throughout the Portland Metro area. Heather has a diverse background in data management, analytics, social media, and writing. She is a graduate of the Digital Marketing Strategies Certificate Program at Portland State University. Heather is quite active, volunteering for many of Portland's premiere digital marketing events. You can often find her hiking in the Columbia River Gorge, catching a local live show, or planning her next travels.Thoroughly Modern Marketing